The following excerpts from ROSETEARS tell of a very special and sacred moment at the Pecos Monastery nine years ago today. It was the moment I knew, in my soul, that love is eternal. I pray it brings you peace, or nudges you to recall your special moment of sensing loved ones nearby. Love to all, always.

“That same year [2012], as my broken heart struggled to find its rhythm without family and farmhouses that had vanished, I went on a surprisingly short yet monumental-for-me retreat to a Benedictine monastery in Pecos, New Mexico. There, even though I had not named what I wanted or needed, the earth, sky, wind, and spirit of the land stood up and volunteered to be my new home of soul on earth.”

“As that first retreat happened to fall on All Saints’ Day, I felt nudged to look to the blue New Mexican skies and sink into the crisp near-winter wind for a soul-sense of my loved ones, now saints with The Others.” 

“Now, all these miles and years and funeral homes later, this small pine sheltered among the trees of New Mexico somehow reminded me of Dad’s tree still standing at its now regal height on the flat planes of the farm. I crouched down on the path, and squinting against the late autumn sun, blindly snapped a few shots with my phone while having no idea if the subject was within the frame.” 

“That night, surrounded by books and journals in my cozy, creaky bed, I reviewed the photos I had taken and discovered the small pine had not only been centered within the frame but was mysteriously illuminated by three distinct arches of lavender light streaming brilliant coronations of love.”

“That tree, on the walking path beside the Pecos River, became for me Trudy’s tree—a tribute to our memories and a tangible marker of eternal love.”-excerpts from ROSETEARS, pgs 59-61